Cranberry compound could be key in the development of a drug to treat neurodegenerative diseases
Blueberries, blackberries, grapes and some nuts such as peanuts are some of the key elements of an investigation that aims to develop a new drug capable of treating some of the most common neurodegenerative diseases in the world.
European media highlighted this week some of the advances in scientific studies carried out by a group of specialists from the Institute of Parasitology and Biomedicine López-Neyra of Granada, Spain.
According to the preliminary information, the new medicine would be made from a derived and improved principle of resveratrol, an ingredient that can be found in the referred fresh fruits.
Experts have performed some tests on patients suffering from ailments such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's or the known Huntington's disease. However, it was not specified what type of tests have been used.
Another point that stands out from the research is the method that scholars try to decipher so that the substance, which would be the main component of the drug, reaches the areas of the brain that have suffered more quickly.
Dr. Elena González Rey, a member of the institution that leads the research, said that the project is based on a multi-day strategy. "The methods most used today are based on providing a drug for a single purpose. However, with this alternative procedure, the drug reaches several points of action, "explained the professor.
In that sense, González clarified that the orientation of the plan to obtain the drug has to do, for example, to the preservation of the neuron and the reduction of the central nervous system to protect it from possible oxidative damage.
Juan Carlos Morales, also a scientist at the López-Neyra Institute of Parasitology and Biomedicine, spoke about resveratol and its properties. Among them, he mentioned how the substance is able to stimulate the anti-tumor activity of the brain, while at the same time transforming it into a neuro-protector.
"The purpose of the study is, therefore, to create a drug, taking as a starting point resveratrol, a natural ingredient found in plants and food," said the scientist.
But Morales put a stop to certain inconveniences that could result from the use of resveratrol. "Large amounts are needed to be used in clinical trials in the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases," he said.
To this statement he added the fact that the bioavailability of the substance is very low, so that the amount that arrives in the areas where it should act is reduced. "It must be modified chemically to get a molecule that, given as a medicine, improves patients affected by a neurodegenerative disease," explained Morales.
According to the scientists of the Institute of Parasitology and Biomedicine López-Neyra, this new research started from some results of previous work that focused on topics such as immunoregulation of infectious, inflammatory and neurodegenerative diseases and biological chemistry.
And although there are no concrete conclusions so far, the specialists are optimistic about their work and hope that in the next three years they can offer some clearer answers regarding the subject.
It emerged that the study is part of an excellence project of the Junta de Andalucía, which is funded by the Ministry of Knowledge, Research and University and the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities, through the National Research Plan and Funds FEDER.
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